James W. Cushing of the Law Office of Faye Riva Cohen
The presumption that a child born of a married couple is the child of that couple is one of the oldest and strongest presumptions in the American common law tradition. Due to various and substantial societal changes in recent decades, the presumption has slowly been modified to reflect those changes the same. In the recent matter of Sitler v. Jones, 2024 Pa.Super. 38 (2024), the Pennsylvania Superior Court had another opportunity to test the limits of the presumption.
The Stitler matter involved a married woman who had an affair with appellant Steven Stitler, and she became pregnant. She was uncertain as to who impregnated her—either her husband or Stitler—and made remarks suggesting either from time to time. Biological testing was never conducted on the child who was born to determine his paternity.
